Ursula Franke Second edition U r s “The River Never Looks Back” is a book about the theory u la and practice of the method of systemic family constellati- F r on. Ursula Franke provides a well-grounded historical over- a n view of the precursors of family constellations. In addition, k e she presents and defines the central terminology of these T The River Never Looks Back methods. The author presents a hypothetical model that h attempts to explain the efficacy of constellations and deals e with a number of questions that emerge when actually R Historical and Practical Foundations carrying them out. The empirical section of the book allows i of Bert Hellinger’s Family Constellations v the reader to take a look at the procedure that is used in e the process of a constellation, from the therapist’s initial r hypotheses to the resolution stage of the constellation. N Franke explains, step-by-step, the application in individual e v therapy. In addition, the possibilities for and limitations of e using constellations in individual therapy are discussed. r L The study presented in “The River Never Looks Back” o o focuses on therapy with anxiety patients. The results of k the study can be used in regular psychotherapeutic prac- s tices, and is thus helpful for all therapists who work with B constellations. a c k m o c . r e u a - l r a ISBN 978-3-89670-391-0 c . w w w 9 783896703910 Carl-Auer Carl-Auer For my Father It’s never too late to habe a happy childhood. Milton H. Erickson The River Never Looks Back .................... Ursula Franke Historical and Practical Foundations of Bert Hellinger’s Family Constellations Translated from the German by Karen Leube eBook, 2017 eBook edition, 2017 Copyright © 2003, 2017 by Carl-Auer-Systeme Verlag All rights reserved. Layout: Drißner-Design, Meßstetten Cover: WSP-Design, Heidelberg Coverpainting: “Palazzo da Mula” by Claude Monet, 1908 ISBN: 978-3-89670-391-9 No part of this book may be reproduced by any process whatsoever without the written permisson of the copyright owner. Title of the original edition: “Wenn ich die Augen schließe, kann ich dich sehen. Familien-Stellen in der Einzeltherapie und -beratung. Ein Handbuch für die Praxis” Copyright © Carl-Auer-Systeme Verlag und Verlagsbuchhandlung GmbH, Heidelberg, 2002 Bibliographic information published by Die Deutsche Nationalbibliothek: Die Deutsche Nationalbibliothek lists this publication in the Deutsche Nationalbibliografie; detailed bibliographic data is available on the internet at http://dnb.d-nb.de. Informationen zu unserem gesamten Programm, unseren Autoren und zum Verlag finden Sie unter: www.carl-auer.de. Wenn Sie Interesse an unseren monatlichen Nachrichten aus der Vangerowstraße haben, können Sie unter http://www.carl-auer.de/newsletter den Newsletter abonnieren. Carl-Auer Verlag GmbH Vangerowstraße 14 . 69115 Heidelberg Tel.+49 6221 6438-0 . Fax +49 6221 6438-22 www.carl-auer.de .............. Contents Foreword to the English edition … 9 Foreword by Willi Butollo … 11 Foreword by Bert Hellinger … 13 Preface … 15 Theoretical Section … 17 1. Introduction … 18 2. Trends in the Development of Psychotherapy … 23 3. Using Family Constellation in Practice … 26 Areas of Application … 26 System … 26 Sculpture – Reconstruction – Constellation … 27 Description of a Family Constellation … 29 Ideal Constellation and Resolution Constellation … 33 Family Constellations in Individual Therapy … 35 Emotional State of the Representatives … 37 “Unfamiliar” Perceptions on the Part of the Representatives during the Constellation … 38 Analogic and Digital Transfer of Information … 41 Hypotheses on the Mechanism of Action Effect … 44 4. Jacob L. Moreno and the Psychodrama … 47 Biographical Information … 48 Theoretical Background … 50 Sociometry and Sociodrama 50, Psychodrama 51 Therapeutic Procedure … 54 5 5. Virginia Satir, Family Reconstruction and Family Sculpture … 58 Biographical Background … 58 Family Reconstruction and Sculpture … 59 Family Reconstruction 60, Family Sculpture 61 6. Ivan Boszormenyi-Nagy and Contextual Therapy … 65 Biographical Information … 68 Therapeutic Concept … 69 Loyalty 71, Give and Take 73, Self-Validation 75, Entitlement 76, Destructive Entitlement 77 Contextual Therapy … 80 Using Contextual Therapy in Practice … 82 Requirements for the Therapist … 85 7. Bert Hellinger and Family Constellation … 87 Biographical Information … 89 Presentation of the Hypothetical Working Model and Its Implications … 92 Bonding and Relationships 92, Order 93, Systemic Entanglement 94, Interrupted Reaching-Out Movement 99, Anxiety 100, Feelings 103 Using Family Constellation in Practice … 105 Interventions and Resolution 105 Practical Section … 109 1. Introduction … 110 2. Central Questions … 112 3. Research Design … 113 Overview … 113 Methods … 114 Qualitative Research 114 The Session … 117 Describing the Procedure to the Client 117, Exploratory Interview 117, Physical Relaxation and Determination of the People 118, Belonging to the System 118, Labeling the Sheets of Paper 118, Family Constellations in Individual Therapy 118 Assessment … 120 Structure of the Assessment 120 Definition of Criteria … 122 Systemic Entanglement 122, Interrupted Reaching-Out Movement 125 6 4. Results of the Individual Family Constellations … 127 Client 1 … 127 Indications of systemic entanglement derived from the exploratory interview 127, Working hypotheses 127, Constellation 127, Further indications in the initial constellation 128, Further hypotheses 128, Aim 128, Resolution 128, Discussion129, Further observations 129, Comparative data elicited from other sources of data elicitation within the project 129 Client 2 … 130 Indications of systemic entanglement in the exploratory interview 130, Further information in the exploratory interview 130, Working hypotheses 131, Constellation 131, Further indications in the initial constellation 131, Further hypotheses 131, Aim 131, Resolution 132, Discussion 132, Comparative data elicited from other sources of data elicitation within the project 133 Client 3 … 133 Indications of systemic entanglement in the exploratory interview 133, Working hypotheses 134, Constellation 135, Further indications in the initial constellation 135, Further hypotheses 135, Aim 135, Resolution 136, Discussion 136, Additional remarks 137, Comparative data elicited from other sources of data elicitation within the project 138 Client 4 … 139 Indications of systemic entanglement in the exploratory interview 139, Working hypotheses 139, Constellation 139, Further indications in the initial constellation 139, Further hypotheses 140, Aim 140, Resolution 140, Discussion 140, Comparative data elicited from other sources of data elicitation within the project 141 Client 5 … 142 Indications of systemic entanglement in the exploratory interview 142, Working hypotheses 142, Constellation 142, Further indications in the initial constellation 143, Further hypotheses 143, Aim 143, Resolution 143, Discussion 144, Comparative data elicited from other sources of data elicitation within the project 145 Client 6 … 146 Indications of systemic entanglement in the exploratory interview 146, Working hypotheses 146, Constellation 146, Further indications in the initial constellation 147, Further hypotheses 147, Aim 147, Resolution 147, Discussion 148, Comparative data elicited from other sources of data elicitation within the project 148 Client 7 … 149 Indications of systemic entanglement in the exploratory interview 149, Working hypotheses 149, Constellation 150, Further indications in the initial constellation 150, Further hypotheses 150, Aim 151, Resolution 151, Discussion 151, Comparative data elicited from other sources of data elicitation within the project 152 Client 8 … 153 Indications of systemic entanglement derived from the exploratory interview 153, Working hypotheses 153, Constellation 153, Further indications in the initial constellation 154, Further hypotheses 154, Aim 154, Resolution 154, Discussion 155, Data from other sources of data collection within the project 155 7 5. Discussion … 156 Results for the Client … 156 Analogic and Digital Communication … 158 Selection of the Relevant Topic … 159 Systemic Entanglement and Developments Following the Constellation … 160 Family Constellations in Group and Individual Therapy … 161 Advantages of Using Family Constellations … 162 in Group Therapy Workshops … 162 Interrupted Reaching-Out Movement … 163 6. Outlook and Recommendations for Further Research … 165 References … 166 8 ................................... Foreword to the English edition It is a great pleasure for me to see the publication of this book in English. Since the first edition of the German text was published in 1996, Bert Hellinger’s method of using family constellation has spread to places all over the world. Numerous publications on the application of this method have appeared in all leading languages, as have training videos of workshops that Bert Hellinger has held throughout the world.1 Detailed information is available at www.hellinger.com. For their support and assistance in the production of the English edition, I would like to thank the following people: First and fore- most, Dirk Koschel, who guided me safely and easily through the maze of any technical problems I encountered along the way; my friends Susan Compton, of Ithaca, NY, for her copy-editing, and Petra Kirchmann for her bibliographical assistance; Isabella Hell, for her hours of searching for needles in the haystack of literature; and my translator, Karen Leube, who put my thoughts into words in a way that was precise and at the same time, creative. I am looking forward to the publication of my second book in English, due to appear in spring of 2003, and which will also be pro- duced by Carl-Auer-Systeme Verlag. This book will focus specifi- cally on the use of the family constellation in individual therapy. It will draw on my many years of experience with clients in individual 1 On stories and insights (Hellinger 2002a), discussion (Hellinger, Schützen- berger, a. Sheldrake 2000), showing Hellinger’s work (Hellinger 1998; Hellinger 2001; Hellinger 2002b; Hellinger 2002c; Hellinger a. ten Hövel 1999; Hellinger, Weber, a. Beaumont 1998a; Hellinger, Weber, a. Beaumont 1998b), esp. with couples (Neuhauser 2001), on family constellation and shamanism (van Kam- penhout 2001), on teaching family constellations (i. e. Beaumont a. Hellinger 1999; Franke to be publ. in 2003; Ulsamer 2002; Ulsamer in prep.). 9